Greg Kerestan - Page 4

What did our critic think of FRANKENSTEIN at Prime Stage? I'm a lifelong horror buff, devouring the Famous Monsters of Filmland on celluloid and printed page, as well as the artsy, philosophical 'elevated horror' that has become a literary and cinematic movement in the last decade. Both the schlocky and the thoughtful branches of horror can both trace their roots back to the shadow cast by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and its innumerable adaptations. For whatever reason, her novel itself has never been a favorite of mine, though I love the way she bucked convention and gender roles to invent literary science fiction and elevated horror. Maybe it's because Frankenstein has transcended being a character on the page in a story with a beginning and end, and become a genuine folk icon. Even a perfect adaptation of Shelley's novel will feel incomplete because the idea of Frankenstein is now so much bigger than the text of Frankenstein. Here, science fiction writer Lawrence C. Connolly and director Liam Macik thread the needle of the Frankenstein myth in an adaptation that stays unusually true to Shelley's novel but nods to sources beyond.

Disney's biggest 'princess show' ever is weirder and more fun than you remember. When Frozen fever hit a decade ago, it was inescapable. No matter how you felt about Anna, Elsa and Olaf, they were quickly overexposed. Bizarre Frozen merchandise is still on the shelves to this day- Frozen cereal, Elsa shirts with no-context phrases like 'Hashtag selfie!' Olaf himself has become a Christmas character, and lawn Olafs have nearly replaced Frosty decorations. 'Let It Go' was a surprise pop hit, and propelled theatre actress Idina Menzel into a new life as 'Adele Dazeem,' movie regular and internet meme. Naturally, a Broadway musical was inevitable. The question is, given Disney musicals' track record of falling between brilliance and mediocrity, how would Frozen do?

The New Hazlett is the perfect place for this sophisticated, wildly ambitious, almost overstuffed, musical soap opera.

What a way to end the season- a toe-tapping, hilarious disco throwback.

Pittsburgh's greatest musical theatre creation comes home, in a production that's something old, something new. If you're going to talk about musicals in Pittsburgh, let alone musicals FROM Pittsburgh, the story is ultimately going to revolve around Godspell. Created by bookwriter John-Michael Tebelak as his master's thesis at CMU circa the early 1970s, the musical quickly headed to Off-Broadway, with a brief Broadway run and a historic Toronto production that formed that roots of the seventies sketch comedy scene. Soon, there was a movie, and after that point, the little Jesus-clown musical from Pittsburgh was a worldwide sensation. Pippin, which shares composer Stephen Schwartz, had a similar Pittsburgh-to-Broadway trajectory, but a show as niche and nihilistic as Pippin will never be able to compete with the mix of loose hippie vibes, vaudeville throwbacks and old-time religion that give Godspell its heart.

What did our critic think? A local institution reborn post-pandemic, the summer farce at Saint Vincent returns with a bang. When people think of summer stock, there's a mental image of college students and outdated hoofers, sometimes even a former TV star, sweating their way through outdated musicals involving straw hats and canes.

What did our critic think? This kicky, soulful musical comedy may be slightly outdated already, but it's got heels full of heart.

The adult-oriented evening performances of the Potter parody are a gut-busting mix of improv, nostalgia and theatre magic.

What did our critic think? This 'good musical about a bad musical' is full of surprises, and none greater than the Saturday matinee.

It may be a product of its time, but what a surprisingly weird, subversive show it can be.

What did our critic think? Split Stage continues to provide a haven for adult-oriented semi-pro theatre. The plot, overly convoluted by design, parodies eighties movie comedies with a 'let's save the rock venue' stream of cliches that get mercilessly savaged. Wannabe rocker Drew (Gabe DeRose) can't seem to make a love connection with nubile waitress Sherrie (Raegan Hochman), while German real estate developer Hertz (Hank Fodor) and his effeminate son Franz (Caleb Feigles) attempt to turn the Sunset Strip into a strip mall. All this mixes with a stream of colorful characters like a hair metal rock god (Michael David Stoddard), a social reformer hippie (Clair Ivy Stoller) and pair of chaotic-bisexual club owners (Josh Reardon and Bill Elder).

What did our critic think? There are a few cultural institutions in the Pittsburgh area of which I'm not just a supporter, I'm an outright stan. Chief among these are the Pittsburgh CLO summer season, the annual farce at Saint Vincent Summer Theatre (more on that later this week), and the Bites and Pints festival at Kennywood. I love live music, delicious food, thrill rides, even the dubious charms of seeing a guy walk around in a kangaroo costume on a hot summer day. (That poor Kenny Kangaroo is a real sport to play along as much as he does.)

Des McAnuff's once-revolutionary 'biopic musical' is still the best in its genre.

Des McAnuff's slick docudrama production style may not be anything new, but it still works like a charm.

Ken Ludwig's farce-mystery hybrid works much better than you'd imagine.

At this point, writing a review of Lin-Manuel Miranda's almost infamously popular hip-hop musical feels redudant. It's Hamilton, people. Go see it.

It may not be a musical anyone especially asked for, but a winning cast and some splashy production makes this one a winner anyway.

You owe it to yourself to see the most divisive musical of the year... or maybe of the decade.

Pop culture is full of paeans to the composer or the playwright; just this past fall, Andrew Garfield starred in Tick Tick... Boom! on Netflix as the young Jonathan Larson. But outside of insider tell-alls, there's not a lot of focus on the behind the scenes creatives of the theatrical world, especially the dramaturge. As a sometimes dramaturge myself, I know the position is misunderstood if it's understood at all: the shepherd of a new work, the dramaturge assists in the creative development of a piece by advising the author and the creative staff, doing research and providing insight and input on structure, tone and other aspects of the work in progress. You can imagine my surprise when I discovered that, one particular weekend, Pittsburgh was showing not one but TWO new plays about the role of the dramaturge in the theatrical process.

While I have my music-nerd quibbles, this is pretty damn good for a non-union touring production.